Agenda and minutes

Members and officers must declare any disclosable pecuniary interests in relation to any business on the agenda.  Declarations should also be made at any stage such an interest becomes apparent during the meeting. 

If in doubt contact the Legal or Democratic Services representative for this meeting.

Councillor Kevin Jenkins declared an interest in item 12 as his daughter played for Worthing Town Football Club.     

Councillor Val Turner declared an interest in item 11 as Worthing Borough Council’s representative for South Downs Leisure trust.

To approve the minutes of the Joint Strategic Committee meeting held on 7 July 2020, copies of which have been previously circulated.

Resolved that the minutes from the Joint Strategic Committee meeting held on 7 July 2020, be approved as an accurate record and signed by the Chairman.

To receive any questions from the public.

In order for the Committee to provide the fullest answer, questions from the public should be submitted by noon on Friday 4 September 2020.

Where relevant notice of a question has not been given, the person presiding may either choose to give a response at the meeting or respond by undertaking to provide a written response within three working days.

Questions should be submitted to Democratic Services,

democratic.services@adur-worthing.gov.uk   

(Note: Public Question Time will operate for a maximum of 30 minutes)

The following question was received from Mr Cornish and read out by the Chairman. 

Representing the former Trustees, Instructors and Members of Adur Community Leisure the 2 questions we would like to be answered by the Joint Strategic Committee on the 8th September are:-

Firstly: If a team of former Trustees, Instructors & Members formed a Registered Charity would they be approved as an Operator and who would Issue that Approval?

Secondly:  Approximately what monetary value would be required to purchase the Assets for the 3 sites and what fee would Adur District Council be seeking from said Operator?

The Chairman advised that the first question would be responded to during the consideration of Item 10.

The Leader of Adur District Council replied to the second question advising that the figures would not be available until the valuation had been carried out and it was anticipated that these would not be finalised until the end of the week at the earliest.

To consider any items the Chairman of the meeting considers to be urgent.

There were no items raised under urgency provisions.

To consider a report by the Director for Digital and Resources, copy attached as item 5

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for Digital & Resources, copies of which had been circulated to all Members and a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes as Item 5.

The report updated the Joint Strategic Committee with the latest expenditure and income projections for each Council in the current financial year 2020/21, compared to the Revenue Budget approved by both Councils in February.  

As at quarter 1, the current projection for the 2020/21 financial year were net operational budget overspends of £912,000 in Adur and £2,779,000 in Worthing. Government funding in the form of grants and the Income Guarantee Scheme would offset this and it was currently estimated that the outturn position would be a net underspend of £54,000 in Adur and an overspend of £362,000 in Worthing. A breakdown was set out in section 4.4 of the report.

Councillor Elizabeth Sparkes proposed the recommendations in the report which were seconded by Councillor Carson Albury and unanimously supported by the Committee.  

Decision:  

That the Joint Strategic Committee noted the report and projected outturn position for the Joint Committee, Adur District Council and Worthing Borough Council against the approved revenue budgets and proposed use of reserves (Appendix 1b and 2b).

To consider a report by the Director for Digital and Resources, copy attached as item 6

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for Digital & Resources, copies of which had been circulated to all Members and a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes as Item 6. 

This report updated the Joint Strategic Committee on the progress made on the 2020/21 Capital Investment Programmes for Adur District Council, Worthing Borough Council. The programmes included schemes which supported the delivery of services by the Joint Services Committee.

A Member sought assurance that the Council’s buildings were DDA compliant in light of the proposed virement for works to be undertaken at Commerce Way. Officers advised that the works were required to support a member of staff with enhanced needs and further adaptations were required than had previously been implemented. 

The recommendations were proposed by Councillor Neil Parkin, seconded by Councillor Brian Boggis and unanimously approved.

Decision:  

The Joint Strategic Committee 

(a)       with respect to the Capital Investment Programme of Adur District Council

      i.        noted the reprofiling of the Adur District Council capital schemes as advised in paragraphs 7.2.1 and Appendix 3;

     ii.        approved the transfer of funding within the Adur Homes Capital Investment Programme to include the Fire Safety Inner Rooms Project within the 2020/21 Capital Investment Programme as detailed in paragraph 7.2.3;

    iii.        approved the virement of £13,200 to fund urgent Disability Discrimination Act access works at Commerce Way as detailed in paragraph 7.2.4; 

   iv.        approved the virement to fund the current overspend on the purchase of wheeled bins for the alternate weekly collection as detailed in paragraph 7.1.2;

    v.        noted the award of external funding of £50,000 from Sompting BIG Local toward play area improvements at Sompting Recreation Ground as detailed in paragraph 7.2.5.

(b)       with respect to the Capital Investment Programme of Worthing Borough Council

      i.        noted the reprofiling of the Worthing Borough Council capital schemes as advised in paragraphs 7.3.1 and Appendix 4;

     ii.        approved the virement to fund the overspend on the purchase of wheeled bins for the alternate weekly collection service as detailed in paragraph 7.1.2;

    iii.        noted the award of £100,000 from Sussex Community Foundation towards the new cafe in Brooklands Park as detailed in paragraph 7.3.2;

                   iv.        approved the virement of £72,000 to fund emergency works at Worthing Crematorium as detailed in paragraph 7.3.3;

                    v.        approved the addition of the urgent replacement of the audio and visual equipment at Worthing Crematorium to the 2020/21 Capital Investment Programme as detailed in paragraph 7.3.4;

                   vi.        approved the addition of the Fish Sculpture Waste Bin to the 2020/21 Capital Investment Programme as detailed in paragraph 7.3.5.

To consider a report by the Director for Digital and Resources, copy attached as item 7

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for Digital & Resources, copies of which had been circulated to all Members and a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes as Item 7.

The report asked Members to note the Treasury Management performance for Adur and Worthing Councils for 2019/20 as required by regulations issued under the Local Government Act 2003.

Members were also asked to note the breach of money market fund investment limits for 1 day on the 1st July 2020.

The recommendations were proposed by Councillor Angus Dunn, seconded by Councillor Elizabeth Sparkes and unanimously approved.

Decision:  

The Joint Strategic Committee is recommended to note the annual report and the breach of the money market fund investment limits.

To consider a report by the Director for Digital and Resources, copy attached as item 8

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for Digital & Resources, copies of which had been circulated to all Members and a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes as Item 8. 

The report updated members on the ongoing work with external partners to address the climate emergency. 

The Committee noted that the Zero 2030; the community led climate conference for Adur and Worthing, had been well attended and celebrated local event, delivered collaboratively between Worthing Climate Action Network, Transition Town Worthing and Adur & Worthing Councils.

A Draft Climate Plan for Adur and Worthing had been developed, produced by Worthing Climate Action Network and the councils based on feedback from the Zero 2030 Climate Conference. The Plan recognised the diversity and strength of current local climate action by external partners. It also highlighted that greater collaboration was needed for Adur and Worthing to jointly achieve the 2050 carbon neutral target.

An Adur & Worthing Carbon Neutral Study had been produced by Anthesis. The Study set out the scale and challenge ahead to deliver local carbon neutral ambitions. It identified the scale and types of interventions needed to achieve the 2050 target. 

To address the Climate Emergency, greater collaboration on climate action was proposed through enhanced engagement with community, business and public sector partners; developing joint ownership of a refined climate plan; and creating clearer methods of joint working.

Members congratulated Officers on the delivery of the inspiring Adur and Worthing Climate Conference - ‘Zero 2030’ whilst acknowledging that the crunch would be how projects were funded and delivered and that the Councils could only do so much. It was suggested that it was not Adur and Worthing Councils’ sole responsibility to deliver this, it needed to be community led.   

The direction of travel was welcomed with the recommendations being proposed by Councillor Ed Crouch, seconded by Councillor Emma Evans and unanimously approved.

Decision:  

The Joint Strategic Committee 

      i.        noted the success of Zero 2030 the community led Climate Conference, and the extent of community activity happening across Adur and Worthing;

     ii.        recognised the work of Worthing CAN in particular for their work on the Draft Climate Plan;

    iii.        endorsed ongoing collaboration with local communities on the Climate Emergency as set out in the Next Steps Section 7 of the report; 

   iv.        endorsed the use of the Adur & Worthing Carbon Neutral Study (by Anthesis) to inform the Draft Climate Plan and other action on the Climate Emergency.

Report by the Director of Digital and Resources, copy attached as item 9

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for the Economy, copies of which had been circulated to all Members and a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes as Item 9. 

The Joint Strategic Committee was asked to  recommend the purchase of 70 acres of farmland known as New Salts Farm, Lancing.

The Committee was asked to agree

• that the land would be held for the purposes of conserving and enhancing the natural environment; enhancing biodiversity; and contributing to the Council’s ambition of being Carbon Neutral by 2030;

• to promote the land through the next Adur Local Plan preparation process to secure it for these purposes for the long term;

• to ring fence part of the capital receipt from the sale of Adur Civic Centre to fund the purchase of the New Salts Farm.

Members welcomed the proposals, however, clarification was sought regarding the valuation of the land, the number of bidders and how the Council would ensure that the land was used as a nature reserve. Officers advised that the land use would be established within the Adur Local Plan. It was noted that the land value was based on the agricultural value of the land and was calculated by rental yield being paid over a number of years, arriving at a capital value. A small premium was also included, as the Council was a special purchaser as it had a special interest in buying the land as a wider landowner with a specific purpose for buying the land. It was also noted that there had been 4 other bidders for the land.         

Members confirmed that the land would not be made into a formal park, but rather ecological space and there would be no building on the land either. 

The recommendations were proposed by Councillor Neil Parkin, seconded by Councillor Emma Evans and unanimously approved, as amended.

Decision:  

That the Joint Strategic Committee 

       i.       recommended to Adur District Council the purchase of land at New Salts Farm, Lancing; 

2. recommended to Adur District Council the approval of a total budget envelope of £925,000 comprising a purchase price of £875,000 and up to £50,000 in fees to cover the cost of acquisition including surveys, fees and stamp duty, to be funded from borrowing; 

3. noted the revenue budget consequences of the borrowing will need to be accommodated within the 2021/22 budget as part of budget setting pending the capital receipt being received from the sale of Adur Civic Centre;

4. delegated authority to the Head of Major Projects and Investment to agree detailed terms of the transaction and enter the contract for the purchase subject to a satisfactory survey of the road, and legal and technical due diligence;

5. authorised £40,000, funded from the capacity issues reserve, to be used to prepare an action plan for the improvement of the site for the purposes set out in paragraph 1.2 of this report. 

Call In: 

There is no call-in for recommendations to meetings of Adur and Worthing  ...  view the full minutes text for item JSC4720-21

To consider a report by the Director for the Economy, copy attached as item 10

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for the Economy, copies of which had been circulated to all Members and a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes as Item 10. 

The report updated members of the Committee on the leisure services in Adur following the insolvency of Adur Community Leisure and sought agreement on a way forward for the reopening of leisure facilities in Adur District.

Members were updated on developments following the report to Committee in July and it was noted that given the community need and extreme urgency to activate the venues as soon as practical, it was intended to let a shorter term contract rather than undergo a full procurement process at this time. 

This could be done by using the Cabinet Office Procurement Policy Note PPN01/20 which remained in force, and enabled the Council to negotiate and make a direct award. 

In response to the public question from Mr Cornish, the Director for the Economy advised the Committee that the intention was to see if the Council could get much of the leisure provision for Adur up and running again as quickly as possible following the collapse of Impulse Leisure.  To achieve this, the Council intended to award an interim contract in the first instance to a financially resilient provider, with the view to letting a longer term contract once the impact of the pandemic had lessened. At this point, any suitably qualified provider would be able to bid.

The recommendations were proposed by Councillor Angus Dunn, seconded by Councillor Neil Parkin and unanimously approved, as amended.

Decision:  

The Joint Strategic Committee 

1. noted the events and progress to date outlined within the report;

2. approved the creation of a budget of £353,000 to take forward the project as outlined in paragraph 6;

3. approved the use of Government Covid 19 Emergency Funding for this purpose;

4. delegated authority to the Director for the Economy in consultation with the Leader and the Executive Member for the Environment to award an Adur Leisure Service Provision Contract if the opportunity arose prior to the November meeting of JSC; 

5. delegated authority to the Director for the Economy to negotiate the purchase of ACL assets (including any potential lease arrangements) to enable ongoing service delivery;

6. noted that a further report would be presented to the committee in November updating members on progress, whether or not a new provider had been identified, and/or the Director for the Economy, in consultation with the Leader and Executive Member, had exercised his delegated authority, as above. 

* At 7.57pm Adur Councillors Brian Boggis, Angus Dunn, Emma Evans, Neil Parkin and David Simmons left the meeting in accordance with the Joint Committee Agreement.

The Chairman advised of a change to the order of the agenda, advising that Item 12 would be considered before Item 11.

To consider a report by the Director for Communities, copy attached as item 12

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for Communities, copies of which had been circulated to all Members and a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes as Item 12. 

The report sought approval for the commencement of a project comprising of: the design, manufacture and installation of a single 106m x 70m 3G football pitch on an existing natural turf pitch site at Palatine Park including new fencing, associated hardstanding, access for players and maintenance equipment, extended car parking and forming a new natural 7 v 7 grass pitch.

The Committee noted that planning permission had been granted subject to conditions and that the construction tender phase was complete and that it was proposed that an award be made to Lano. Their tender cost would be £842,301.86 (exclusive of contingency and VAT). 

A 62% Football Foundation capital grant had been approved against a total project cost of £916,543 which equated to a maximum payment of £569,043 to cover the costs of installation. 

It was noted that management of the facility would be via South Downs Leisure who would implement a community management plan to ensure the facility was correctly operated.

S106 receipt funding from Worthing Borough Council of £340,000 had previously been committed as part of the capital programme and Worthing Town FC funding equated to £7,500 of the project cost.

The recommendations were proposed by Councillor Ed Crouch, seconded by Councillor Val Turner and unanimously approved.

Decision:  

The Joint Strategic Committee 

       i.       approved an increase in the capital budget of £76,540 funded by external funding as set out in paragraph 6.2 below;

2. authorised the use of £340,000 of s106 monies to deliver the build;

3. authorised the letting of a contract for construction of the facility to Lano, the preferred bidder for the build phase;

4. approved the creation of a Project Steering Group to manage the build;

5. approved the appointment of South Downs Leisure to manage the asset in future years on the terms set out in the Football Foundation Funding Agreement and authorised the amendment of the existing Funding and Management Agreement between the Council and the Trust to include the new facility;

6. authorised the Head of Environmental Services to execute and return the Grant Acceptance Form on the terms set out in the Award Letter dated 24th July 2020 by 24th September 2020 incorporating the general terms and conditions of the grant funding agreement.

To consider a report by the Director for the Economy, copy attached as item 11

Before the Committee was a report by the Director for the Economy, copies of which had been circulated to all Members and a copy of which is attached to the signed copy of these minutes as Item 17. 

The report set out the findings of recent work to understand the implications of the Covid-19 Pandemic on the delivery of leisure services in the Borough of Worthing and to make a decision around the level of financial support that was provided to the operator, South Downs Leisure Trust.

The Committee acknowledged the importance of the facilities to Worthing residents whilst noting that the consultant’s report and South Downs Leisure Trust Business Plan had been carefully considered and the finances scrutinised.  

The recommendations were proposed by Councillor Val Turner, seconded by Councillor Elizabeth Sparkes and unanimously approved.

Decision:  

The Joint Strategic Committee 

1. approved the financial package of support for South Downs Leisure Trust for 2020/21; and

2. approved the use of Government Covid-19 Emergency Funding for this purpose.